Wonder Woman represents female empowerment and teaches positive female traits such as honesty and kindness, and has inspired women over the years to believe in themselves. Originally intended to be a feminist symbol, she represents a clearly stated message that women do not need men to be happy and successful. Whereas characters such as Batman, Barbara Gordon, Louis Lane, and Superman can easily be defined in one sentence, the character Wonder Woman is more complex: Diana, Princess of Themyscira, daughter of Hippolyta, the ultimate Amazon warrior, AKA Wonder Woman, and so forth. She is a contrasting picture of haughty royalty and an innocent girl that has issues with her own mother and has been portrayed as everything from a naïve virgin to an imposing, aristocratic goddess with little respect for men.
Despite her domineering exterior she is in some aspects quite sheltered and unprepared for the greed, oppression, and cruelty that she observes after first arriving in the patron world. She seems out of place at times until she is able to adjust and adapt to the new culture she finds herself in. Sometimes she takes on the guise of Diana Prince to conceal her true identity and works in espionage with Steve Trevor other times she remains her true self with no apparent need to hide her identity. Regardless, Diana begins to form her own impressions of the outside world with their foreign value system and prejudices well in tact. She observes their contradictory attitudes and seeming double-standards, and samples their foreign cuisine. She also observes their choices of dress and eventually overcomes her initial biases towards men to develop an acceptance and respect for the integrity and virtue that some men possess. In more recent portrayals, she even develops an attachment to a man who the patron world knows as Batman of whom she may in fact associate with the ancient Greek hero Odysseus known for his selflessness and noble deeds accomplished by using only his cunning and natural gifts. (“Wonder Woman…”, n.d.)
Her physical features also define her. She is tall, muscular, with somewhat broad shoulders. She is also an intense beauty with a commanding presence. She has a clear sense of identity knowing who she is and where she has come from. She is between worlds in that she cannot return to her home, yet at the same time she is faced with many new challenges in the patron world of man. She is the rebellious daughter from an ancient pagan culture who ran away against her mother’s wishes. Further, her culture has no idea of what right and wrong is but instead only knows a monotheistic religious background governed by a supreme deity. (Daniels, 2000) For example the goddess Aphrodite represents the love/lust which symbolizes the need to continue and protect the species. Ares’ realm defends and protects through excessive force and violence. Athena is compassionate and uses great wisdom but is also known for her occasional uses of cold-blooded scheming.
Unlike her male counterparts (e.g. Batman, Green Lantern, Aquaman, Superman, and so forth), her personality has changed slightly with each new writer. This change reflects the changing attitude of society towards women over the last 60+ years. For example during the golden age of comics (1933-1945), Wonder Woman was intended to be feminist icon in favor of a matriarchal rule. However after Marston’s death in 1947, the Atomic Age (1946-1956) writers of the series changed her personality in such a way that critics believed there were numerous hidden meanings in the stories that communicated lesbian and sadomasochism themes. (Pryor, 2003) The Silver Age (1956-1969) of comics stripped her of all her super powers depicting her as a secret agent that fought crime. (Krug, 2006) However during the Bronze Age of comics (1970-1979) the character Wonder Woman regained her super powers but took on more of a slender, shapelier look, loosing her broad shoulders and softening her previously muscular appearance. In the modern age of comics (1980 – present), Wonder Woman is portrayed as a truly American hero, pictured as a beautiful, intelligent woman who is both powerful and aristocratic in nature. In 1987, a new writer of her series, George Perez, revamped her image and gave her a highly pro-woman personality while retaining the underlying theme that men and women should live together as equals. (Krug, 2006)
Archetypes
One of the three areas explored by the psychoanalyst Carl Jung (1875 – 1961) involved research that studied the collective unconscious. However, unlike Freud whose research centered on curing sexually related problems, Jung’s research focused on the positive aspects of the unconscious. (Tallman, 2005) Jung believed the collective unconscious provided a common source of information shared by all of humanity. This information transcends time and is passed down to each successive generation in the form of powerful emotional symbols which he termed archetypes. Evidence of archetypes can be seen throughout recorded history and into our present day in the form of external expressions and through the interpretation of our dreams. (Tallman)
External sources used to express archetypes can be seen through storytelling, myths and legends, religion, literature and art. Even today’s journalists take advantage of archetypes to enhance their messages and increase understanding of current affairs. (Berkowitz, 2005) For example, Mother Teresa has been described in the context of the Good Mother archetype. She is self-less, kind, nurturing, a healer, and so forth. In contrast, female suicide bombers have been portrayed as the Woman Warrior who will sacrifice anything for a just cause no matter how high the price. Other commonly used archetypes are the magician (or trickster), the hero, and the demon. (Berkowitz)
Archetypes are also present in other forms of modern media. The theme of Women Warriors was portrayed by such movies as Charlie’s Angels, the Bionic Woman, and even more recently in the X-Files character Scully and Xena the Warrior Princess. The Woman Warrior archetype actually has five distinct traits: beauty, defiance, sexuality, intelligence, and toughness. These qualities intertwine and can be mixed together in a variety of ways. So depending on the viewing audiences’ current cultural perceptions and trends, writers and Hollywood film-makers will either emphasize or deemphasize certain qualities of these five traits. (Burke, 2005) For example, film productions of the 1970’s emphasized the beauty, sexuality, and the intelligence of the Woman Warrior while deemphasizing defiance and toughness. The television series “Charlie’s Angels” provides us a good example of this. During the 1980’s however, film makers portrayed the female warrior as tuff and defiant while still retaining their beauty, sexuality, and intelligence. Even more recently films such as Tomb Radar have again softened the Woman Warrior’s image emphasizing beauty, sexuality, intelligence, while adding the dimension of both mental and physical strength combined with an underlying sense of justice as opposed to outright defiance. (Inness, 2004)
The second way archetypes surface is through the symbolic imagery of our dreams. According to Jung, dreams are the images, figures, and experiences of our world since the beginning of time. They are derived from the repetitive events experienced by our ancestors. (Indick, 2004) Jung believed these dreams could be interpreted using analytical techniques but for successful interpretation to take place, the individual must first have knowledge of mythology to fully comprehend the dreams content. (Indick) For example, the Woman Warrior archetype has its historical roots with Athena, the Greek goddess of war, peace, and wisdom. Greek mythology tells us that the daughters of Athena were strong, heroic, and intelligent. They were also fierce warriors who would defend what they believed was right no matter what the personal sacrifice or cost. Today’s modern portrayal of the archetypal Woman Warrior also contains these traits and could conceivably be viewed as a modern version of Athena’s daughters. (Indick)
Wonder Woman is the modern expression of the Woman Warrior and the Goddess archetype. She retains all the traits of the Woman Warrior but was also created by the goddesses, and raised in an aristocratic heritage that still worships a pantheon deity. So in this sense she is also a daughter of Athena and a goddess in her own right. The goddess archetype is also one of the symbols used to denote the various aspects of our psyche’s attempt to integrate symbolic information into the individual self and exists as an archetypal image of the Mother archetype. (Tallman, 2005) For example, Mother Nature is a commonly used term that implies a great provider and giver of life. Mother Nature is also the creator from which all things in nature originate. Wonder Woman personifies this image in her position as an Amazonian ambassador of peace and justice. Her counterpart, the Woman Warrior, focuses on her Amazon born warrior nature. The Woman Warrior is willing to fight and if necessary sacrifice all for the sake of justice. However Woman Warriors can also be cold blooded killers who kill without hesitation for what they perceive to be the greater cause.
In the case of Wonder Woman, the combination of the Goddess/Woman Warrior archetype balances out the two extremes. She is a fierce warrior that fights for justice and reform but also retains an aristocratic divinity that exemplifies truth and peace. She seeks positive reform and will fight for that no matter what the personal cost. She can be a fierce warrior capable of great destruction but at the same time she protects and heals the weak and sick. (Gilligan, & Simon, 2004)
Behaviorism
The island of Themyscira (Paradise Island) was a virtual utopia. The Amazons lived together in peace, shielded from the corruption of the outside world. Jealousy, division of thought, petty crimes, and greed were almost nonexistent allowing the Amazon tribe to live together, united as sisters with a common bond. They were free to develop their artistic and literary skills, proud of their warrior heritage, and protected by the ancient Greek goddesses they worshipped. Further, the Amazons had become conditioned to accept their utopia. They accepted their queen, the goddesses they worshipped, and there is no indication that any of them desired something different, with the exception of Princess Diana. The underlying themes of the Amazon tribe also imply a seeming predictability of human well being, consistency, and a sense of pride and integrity within their ageless society.
The Amazon’s believed that their utopia granted them freedom and tranquility when in fact the inhabitants could easily be viewed as prisoners who were forbidden to leave the island. Further, the inhabitants had been so conditioned to accept the established standards and cultural norms that these norms were no longer questioned but became an expected and natural behavior for everyone on the island. Authority and law were established by the goddesses of the Pantheon and followed without question. The traditional family unit did not exist within this all female society. Even upon the birth of Princess Diana, her mother was not solely responsible for her care and upbringing but instead the entire tribe of Amazon women raised the child.
This picture of the Amazon utopia parallels the utopia described by the behavioral psychologist, B.F. Skinner. In his book the “Walden Two,” Skinner creates a fictional utopia in an isolated area of the mid-western United States. (Altus, 2004) Unlike the goddesses of the Amazons, Skinner’s utopia is governed by behavioral psychologists that are charged with the task of maintaining peace and tranquility within the community. As with the Amazonian tribe, no traditional family unit exists. Instead, husbands and wives sleep in different rooms and their children are taken away from them at birth to be raised by the general community. Positive reinforcement was then used to condition the children to like the things that were acceptable within the utopia. If thoughts of jealously, greed, and so forth surfaced individuals were given pamphlets to read and upon completion were immediately cured of their erroneous thinking. (Altus)
Skinner’s utopia is not as developed as the Amazonian utopia in that behavioral conditioning techniques are still routinely necessary to correct unacceptable thinking. Further, Skinner’s utopia lacks the independence and self-sufficiency of the Amazonian utopia having instead to rely on the U.S. government for funding and economic strength. However, the protection provided by the U.S. government that ensures the utopia’s safety and isolation is similar to the protection and isolation afforded the Amazon tribe by the goddesses of the Pantheon. This developing utopia that Skinner created was consistent with his theme of progressing into something that improves the emotional and mental health of the American population. (Altus, 2004)
Skinner’s interest in creating a utopia supported his desire that people deviate from the typical American lifestyle of simply wanting to get married, buy a house, and raise a family. Instead, Skinner encouraged individuals to experiment with different ways of living. The utopia depicted in his book “Walden Two” is one such experiment in how to live. (Altus, 2004) Skinner believed that we should use our existing knowledge of human behavior to form a new social environment that would support a positive and balanced existence both in an emotional sense and from a materialistic perspective that is characterized by a strong sense of social justice. (Altus) Like the Amazon’s, Skinner sought to replace and recondition the dehumanizing, controlling behaviors he saw in the 1940’s American culture and replace this negative control with more positive methods of behaviors for doing things that would improve our nation’s mental and physical health.
Originally intended to be a feminist symbol, Wonder Woman provides a clear portrayal that women do not need men to be happy and successful. She comes from a pagan culture that worships the ancient Greek goddesses of the pantheon, lives in a utopia consisting of only women, and travels to the patron world where she is faced with the challenges of understanding and adapting to life in a new and very different environment that is filled with men, corruption, and greed. Definite role reversals exist in both the original stories portrayed by Marston and later versions where the heroin rescues her boyfriend (as opposed to the hero rescuing his girlfriend.) The various transformations the character Wonder Woman has undergone over the 60+ years that the comic book series has been in print have not affected the ideal she personifies of female empowerment and positive female traits such as honesty and kindness. She is an inspiration to women and inspires them to believe in themselves. Her image is so powerful that she has even been used during therapy sessions to help women overcome painful childhood experiences or recent crises they have faced as adults. (Thomas, 2005) Wonder Woman is truly an iconic symbol of the empowerment and unique value that women can provide within a society.
References:
Altus, D.E. (2004). B.F. Skinner’s utopian vision: Behind and beyond Walden two. [Review of the book Walden two]. Contemporary Justice, 7(3), 267-286.
Berkowitz, D. (2005). Suicide bombers as women warriors: Making news through mythical archetypes. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 82(3), 607-622,16p.
Burke, P. (2005). Female action heroes: different but equal, or equal and the same. American Sociological Association, 1-21.
Daniels, L. (2000). Wonder Woman, the complete history: The life and times of the amazon princess. San Francisco: Chronicle Books LLC.
Gilligan, S., & Simon, D. (2004). Walking in two worlds: the relational self in theory, practice, and community. Phoenix: Zeig, Tucker, & Theisen, Inc.
Indick, w. (2004). Movies and the Mind: Theories of the Great Psychoanalysts Applied to Film, Jefferson: McFarland & Company, Inc.
Inness, S.A. (2004). Action chicks: New images of tough women in popular culture. New York: Palgrave.
Krug, K.A. (2006, November 8). Wonder Woman strong as ever – even at 65. Seattle Times. Retrieved November 23, 2006 from http://archives.seattletimes.nwsource.com/cgi-bin/texis.cgi/web/vortex/display?slug=wonderwoman08&date;=20061108&query;=Wonder+Woman
Pryor, M. (2003). The man behind Wonder Woman: William Marston. California: JimHillMedia.
Tallman, B. (2005). Archetypes for spiritual direction: Discovering the heroes within. New Jersey: Paulist Press.
Thomas, P.M. (2005). Dissociation and internal models of protection: Psychotherapy with child abuse survivors. Psychotherapy: Theory, Research, Practice, Training, 42(1), 20-36.
Wonder Woman. (n.d.). Retrieved November 18, 2006 from http://jl.toonzone.net/wonder/wonder.htm
